1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image processing apparatus, an image processing method and a storage medium.
2. Related Background Art
A program called an “electronic album” has been known, which runs on an information processing apparatus such as a personal computer or the like. Such sort of program allows for easy insertion, deletion and moving of images in the electronic album, by means of several pocket cells used to paste the images to each page.
In an image pocket cell type page of the electronic album, the size or the position of the pocket cell can be set by selecting from previously prepared patterns, or arbitrarily modified. Its order and position can be managed, in case of an image insertion, by moving one position backward the image which was present at the insertion position and the following images, in case of an image deletion, by erasing the image which was present at the deletion position and moving one position forward the following images.
Also, document creating/editing programs similarly running on the personal computer exist, which allow to paste an image at almost any arbitrary position, furthermore, after pasting, the position and the size of the image can be freely modified. This is so to speak a free image position and size type page and its appearance as a document can be improved by adjusting the position relative to the texts or the figures on the same page.
The image pocket cell type page is easily operated and as it can be regarded as a paper album from the background art which has simply been substituted by an electronic form, is easily understood. On the other hand, the influence of an insertion or a deletion of the image into a certain page extends to the image position in the following pages. For example, if an image is deleted from a page preceding a page completed as a photograph made of three grouped images, one of the grouped images would move to the preceding page and when displayed on a TV or printed on a paper, its consistency as a catalog or grouped photograph is lost.
On another front, the free image position and size type page has a high level of freedom for its appearance as an album page, but leaves a blank space when the image is deleted. In the case the image is inserted, operations such as moving other images are necessary therefore lacks ease of use.